It’s natural, we all want to get the best. We want to be heard and respected. Unfortunately, practice is very often different and there is no worse thing than a customer leaving frustrated and angry. Not only did he not buy the product he wanted, but more importantly, he did not receive enough respect as a person. The lack of respect for his person will never be forgiven and you can be sure that he will not come back.
After all, successfully closing the deal at the time is not exactly the most important thing in the world. However, it is absolutely essential that the client leaves feeling good and respected. He may decide not to buy today, but next time he’ll be happy to come back and buy something else. Everyone who works in client service needs to realise that there is much more at stake. A reputation, a recommendation that a client can give to someone else, even if he hasn’t closed the deal at that moment. The moment you meet the client, you are playing for the future, for future possible closed deals.
The most important thing you need to make a deal and build your reputation with your clients is interpersonal relationships.
The client needs to feel respected, he needs to feel trust in you and be listened to. He needs to know that you care about improving his life at that moment and not your profit from the deal. This applies to all areas, it doesn’t matter what you bring to the market. Building trust is absolutely key in the relationship with your clients, it’s the most important thing.
What you say is of course very important, but what is more important is your body language. These are the signals we all subconsciously perceive that send clear information about you to the client.
What we can do to support our contact with the client:
– We maintain eye contact
– We keep our body straight
– We speak naturally, involving some not very expressive gestures
– We are friendly and engage our smile
– We listen actively and attentively to the client
If we are trying to be friendly and personable but you are actually thinking how annoying the appointment is, know that your face says it all. Active listening is not just about giving the other person 100 percent of your attention (i.e. no checking your phone or watch, etc. ), but also about tuning in to the same wave as your client. You can use similar gestures, facial expressions, similar linguistic turns of phrase that your client uses. He will automatically consider you as a person who is similar to him and is an allies with him. You are in no way dangerous to him and he can afford to trust you.
Beware of dismissive gestures in non-verbal communication – crossed legs, crossed and folded arms on the chest. Do not send signals of nervousness and impatience, even if you have another appointment and are under time stress. In this case, you can politely apologize and find a solution with your client that will make both of you feel respected. Know that all it takes is one small raise of the eyebrow improperly applied and business is lost.
Improve yourself and treat your client the same way you want to be treated when you are the client. It’s very simple.